


Smoke and Mirrors

by LittlebutFiery



Series: Fictober 2018 [2]
Category: Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood & Manga
Genre: Fictober, Fictober 2018, Friendly(ish) Banter, Gen, Planning for the Promised Day, Secrets, Some profanity
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-04
Updated: 2018-10-04
Packaged: 2019-07-25 00:29:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 826
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16186328
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LittlebutFiery/pseuds/LittlebutFiery
Summary: Rebecca Catalina HATES not being in on a secret.





	Smoke and Mirrors

**Author's Note:**

> Apparently all my Fictober fics are going to be about Havoc, Rebecca, or Havolina. Then again, is anyone surprised?
> 
> Fictober Day 3: "How can I trust you?"

Rebecca Catalina was not one to appreciate bullshit. She could tolerate a certain amount of it - hell, she worked for General Grumman, the shiftiest, craftiest bastard in the army.

But after a while, she just couldn’t take it anymore.

Which is why, on a sunny, otherwise mundane Wednesday afternoon, she found herself storming into the Havoc General Store to talk with a certain blond-haired shopkeep.

“Hey, welcome to -”

“Can it, ashtray!” Rebecca snapped, catching Jean Havoc off guard.

“Woah, easy there,” Jean spluttered, putting his hands up in surrender. “Whatever happened, it wasn’t me. This time I actually mean it.”

“Wasn’t you, huh?” Rebecca demanded. “Then tell me why I heard your name dropped about a dozen times while General Grumman was having a secret meeting with someone!”

Jean’s eyes went big as saucers, his cigarette falling from his slack jaw. After a moment he hissed, “Keep your goddamn voice down, Catalina!”

He scanned the store, saw no other customers, and visibly relaxed. “You’re lucky nobody else was here, or we’d both be in deep shit.”

“So what’s the big damn secret?” Rebecca demanded again.

“If you were supposed to know, you’d know,” Jean scowled. “Either buy something or leave me alone, please. Getting yelled at ain’t good for my blood pressure, and the docs are on my ass about it.”

“Tell you what. You tell me what I want to know, and I’ll buy whatever the hell you want,” Rebecca offered a smile. Force wasn’t getting her anywhere with Jean - he was stubborn as a mule, Riza had always told her - so maybe flattery or bribery would.

“Look, Catalina. I get it. I used to think with my dick. A pretty lady could smile at me and show the right amount of cleavage and I’d do whatever. That’s what got me into this fucking mess,” Jean frowned, gesturing at his wheelchair. “So it’s still a no.”

She sighed. “What do you think I’m gonna do, go tell the bad guys all about some secret plan? I’m not a fucking idiot.”

“How can I trust you?” Jean demanded.

“What?” Rebecca asked.

“You want to know shit, I gotta know I can trust you. So far, I don’t,” Jean crossed his arms, frowning at her.

“I’m Riza’s best friend!” Rebecca argued.

“Yeah, so’s Hayate, and I ain’t tellin’ him. You’ll have to do better than that,” Jean scowled.

“Hayate is a  _ dog _ ,” Rebecca huffed.

“Well, he yaps less than you do. Maybe I should tell him after all,” Jean chuckled.

“You’re a bastard,” Rebecca hissed.

“I might be a bastard, but I’m not a dumbass. I know when to keep my mouth shut,” Jean shook his head.

Rebecca pinched the bridge of her nose, letting out a heavy sigh. “You’re not listening to me.”

“You’re not listening to  _ me _ ,” Jean growled. “I said buy something or get out. I’m not in the mood to argue.”

Rebecca sighed again. Well, fuck. This wasn’t going well. She’d pissed Jean off and gotten nothing out of him.

She turned to go but stopped with her hand on the doorknob as she remembered a secret she  _ had _ been a part of. “How were those fancy cigarettes Riza got for you?”

“What?” Jean asked, sounding baffled.

“When Riza and I got lunch a few weeks back, we went out and got you some fancy Xingese cigarettes. Riza said you’d particularly like them,” Rebecca said. “I...think she was hoping you might share one with the Colonel?”

She turned and found a very odd expression on Jean’s face. After a moment he seemed to recollect himself, replying lightly, “Sorry you two wasted money on them. They were garbage.”

“That’s too bad,” Rebecca frowned, not certain if he was understanding what she was trying to say.

“Yeah. I could only pawn one off on the Colonel. He wouldn’t even take a second one,” Jean shrugged. His voice was the epitome of innocence, but there was a sly glint in his eyes.

“Let me guess,” Rebecca went on, smiling knowingly, “He had some ‘important paperwork to go read,’ or something.”

“That’s exactly what he said,” Jean snorted. “As if the bastard reads any of his paperwork.”

They were both quiet for a moment before Jean called, “Hey, Ma!”

A muffled voice from the back room replied, so Jean yelled back, “I’m goin’ out for a smoke. I’ll be back in a bit!”

This time, Rebecca could hear the retort: “Jean Michael Havoc, you  _ know _ what the doctor said!”

“Aw, c’mon, Ma!” Jean whined. “I’m just gonna be catching up with an old pal! I’ll be back!”

He wheeled himself towards the door, chuckling at Rebecca’s hesitation to follow. “Well, Catalina? You wanted to chat, let’s chat. We’ve apparently got a lot to talk about.”

Rebecca grinned and followed him, humming in triumph. She loved being in the know about the next big thing.

And whatever this secret entailed, she knew it was a big one.


End file.
